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Open-world games, nostalgia, and overall happiness in life

Examining the effects of playing open-world games and nostalgia on happiness

Status
Active, not recruiting
Phases
Unknown
Study type
Interventional
Source
ISRCTN
Registry ID
ISRCTN14757739
Enrollment
500
Registered
2025-04-30
Start date
2025-04-14
Completion date
Unknown
Last updated
2025-09-08

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Overall life happiness of postgraduate students Mental and Behavioural Disorders

Interventions

This study employed a 2 (Playing an open-world game vs. no open-world game) × 2 (Nostalgia vs. no nostalgia) between-subject experimental design. All study participants were randomly allocated to one
Condition 2: Playing an open-world game + no nostalgia
Condition 3: No open-world game + nostalgia
Condition 4 (control group): No open-world game + no nostalgia). The study was conducted in a lab experimental setting on a university campus. More specifically, in Condition 1, participants were invi

Sponsors

Kyushu Sangyo University
Lead Sponsor

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
All

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: Full-time postgraduate student

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria: Participants had to be full-time students

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frame
Self-expressed life happiness was measured across all four study conditions using a brief questionnaire with four Likert-scale measurement items (1 = strongly disagree, 9 = strongly agree), after participants had played Zelda and watched the Studio Ghibli film clip (Condition 1), after playing Zelda (Condition 2), after watching the Studio Ghibli film clip (Condition 3), and upon starting the study (Condition 4): 1. “I feel grateful for the good things in my life.” 2. “I am satisfied with the overall direction of my life and look forward to what lies ahead.” 3. “Overall, I would describe myself as a happy person.” 4. “I generally feel a sense of peace and contentment when I think about my life as a whole.”

Secondary

MeasureTime frame
Self-expressed sense of exploration, feeling of calm, mastery and skill, purpose/meaning in life were measured using the following measurement items after participants had indicated their happiness in life: 1. Exploration was measured using 3 items: “I appreciate seeking out new experiences, even if they feel unfamiliar or slightly uncomfortable at first.” “I view my life as an adventure that lies ahead, filled with possibilities and opportunities.” “I view each day as a chance to discover something new.” 2. Sense of calm was measured with the following three items: “I feel calm and collected in my daily life.” “I am feeling angry about a lot of things in my life.” (reverse coded) “I generally feel upset.” (reverse coded) 3. Sense of mastery and skill was measured using the following three items: “I can find solutions when I face difficulties in my life.” “I believe I am well equipped to navigate life’s day-to-day challenges.” “I have the necessary skills to master life.” 4. Sense of purpose/meaning in life was measured using the following three items: “I feel my life contributes to something larger than myself.” “I experience a deep sense of fulfilment when I think about the path I am on.” “Overall, I view my life as meaningful and purposeful.”

Countries

Japan

Contacts

Public ContactAndreas Eisingerich
a.eisingerich@imperial.ac.uk+442075949763

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ISRCTN (via WHO ICTRP) · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026